OCTOBER 30, 2013

Swiss authorities open criminal probe against Ecclestone

Yet another war front has opened for F1's embattled chief executive Bernie Ecclestone.

Yet another war front has opened for F1's embattled chief executive Bernie Ecclestone.

As the trial brought by a German media company started in London on Tuesday, 83-year-old Ecclestone was accused of being "corrupt" by lawyers for Constantin Medien, who are seeking $171 million in damages.

Not only that, Briton Ecclestone is still waiting to see if German prosecutors are going to push their similar, albeit criminal charges to a trial, relating to the $44 million payment made to Gerhard Gribkowsky, allegedly as a bribe.

And it now emerges that Swiss authorities have opened their own criminal investigation into the same matter relating to the sale of F1's commercial rights some years ago.

Following a report in the Financial Times, the Bloomberg news agency quoted a spokesman for the Geneva prosecutor's office as saying: "A criminal investigation has been launched."

The spokesman said the investigation follows a request made by Constantin.

"We have to establish the veracity of the facts and whether these would constitute a criminal violation," he added.

(GMM)